Valkyrie
by scarlet tribe
Summary: Joan King, a woman who snuck into the American Army, has proven herself to be just as brave a soldier as anyone. But now she has a problem. Getting there was the easy part, but getting home alive in one piece proves to be more of a challenge than she anticipated, especially when she gets attached to a special little group.
1. Chapter 1

Planes flew low to the line of tanks and troops as the thunder of bombs almost deafened their ears. The ground shook as soldiers ran about, getting under cover and preparing for a ground attack.

"King!" The top of a tank named _Valkyrie_ called out to a soldier who was climbing up the back. "King, get your ass in here!"

"Not on your life!" King shouted back, grabbing the large gun on the back and pulling herself up. "I got a job to do!"

"King, I'll drag your ass in here, don't you-" He was cut off with a swear as he slumped down into the tank. He had been shot in the shoulder.

"Top!" King called and ducked down as a rain of bullets hit the tank near her. She sat and caught her breathe, holding her gun close. She heard her tank mates calling her name. Bullets continued to hit the tank. She looked around and slid off the tank and crawled under. "Hey, open up!" She called as she beat on the door on the bottom. One of the drivers opened it and helped her climb in.

"You ok?" he asked. She nodded and looked at her Sargent. He had a hole in his arm. They flinched as some explosive shook their tank. Her Sargent started shouting orders and everyone shifted into position. She sat next to the loader, trying to stay out of the way, but close enough to the radio in case she needed to answer it. It took a while, but eventually the planes left and all that was left were a few German foot soldiers.

"You think it's ok to go outside?" Hank, the gunner, asked her. She shrugged.

"One way to find out." John, the secondary driver answered and popped his hatch and stood. They all followed suit and climbed out. King saw a few American soldiers leading the Krauts that had surrendered.

"Alright, you guys know the drill!" Their Sargent shouted, ordering them out. They climbed out and started walking around, checking the dead for people they knew or checking for anything they could use.

"King!" John called to her. She turned and caught the pack of cigarettes heading her way. She smiled at him and waved in thanks. She'd be using them later. She stood up and starting walking over to the second tank to make sure everyone was ok. Her helmet was lopsided on her head and she lit up a cigarette. She exhaled with a sigh.

Her ears perked up as metal hit the ground near her. She snapped her head and her eyes shot open wide. She had a few seconds to act. Her cigarette fell out of her mouth as she leapt, taking off her helmet. She shouted out a warning as she slammed her helmet down over it and lay on top of it. Thunder roared louder than she had ever heard before and she felt as if she was flying. She never felt herself hitting the ground. But she did feel pain. Her chest felt as if it was being stabbed over and over and over again, it hurt in inhale, she smelt burning flesh. Her neck and arm felt as if it was on fire. Grey, blurry sky filled her vision before it faded to black. She would be going home now. She would be going home.


	2. Chapter 2 The Meeting

I noticed two of you who commented came from my other story, I hope this one meets your expectations. Thank you so much for reading and sticking with me!

Her eyesight was blurry as her eyes blinked to focus. She heard someone talking to her and she rolled her head to look at them. She could make out to shape of the doctor who had been keeping her alive. Doctor Richard stood next to her, gently tapping her face, waking her up. She grunted and swatted with her good arm.

"What's up?" She asked as she sat up, grunting. "Can I go?"

"Not yet, I'm taking you off the morphine to see if you can function properly." He told her. She sat up and faced him.

"I've been feeling like shit for the past two months." She told him. "I think I'll be ok." He sighed.

"Then let me see your arm." He told her. She shrugged and took her shirt off. Her shoulder and arm was wrapped up in bandages. Her torso had healed fairly quickly. It was sore and it hurt, but at least she wasn't at a risk of getting infected. Her arm, however, had been burned from her forearm and up to part of her neck. Some of it had gotten infected so it was taking longer to heal. She hissed as some of the bandages pulled away from the open wounds. Doctor Richard put some antibiotics on it and wrapped it up in new bandages.

"Have you heard from my crew?" She asked, breaking the silence. He looked at her before going back to his work.

"No." He answered. "But that isn't a surprise. They are halfway across Germany now." She hummed. "Your new crew should be here any day now though."

"So you're kicking me out?" She teased. He cracked a smile.

"Yeah, we need more beds." He told her. "They just never stop coming, do they?" She Looked at him with pity. She would never be able to do what he did. She had guts, sure, but she would not be able to do that. How could he go on, knowing the people he was supposed to save would die anyway? She would always respect him for his ability to keep going. "So, are you excited to meet your new crew?" He asked, trying to sound optimistic. She just gave him a look. _Are you serious?_ "I'm sure you'll be fine. Your first crew got used to you, didn't they?"

"I'd rather stay with my old crew." She mumbled. "God know's John would drive them all into a trench if I don't keep him awake."

"I'm sure they will do just fine." He reassured her teasingly. She rolled her eyes and gave him a small smile as he finished up wrapping her arm. "There you go." He said and she grabbed her shirt, pulling it back on. "Now, you can still stay here for the night, but you'll be cleared for duty tomorrow. Here are some extra bandages. Don't forget to change them or you'll be stuck here again and I know how much you love that." He teased.

"What do I do when I'm out?" She asked. She didn't have her crew with her, and she didn't know when the other crew would arrive.

"Well, your new group is supposed to come in tomorrow for orders and to fill up on supplies." He told her, "I guess take the evening off and meet them tomorrow. Don't worry about tomorrow until it gets here." He advised and pushed her shoulder gently to get her to lay down again. She let him. "Try to get some rest, you'll need it tomorrow since you won't be dosed with any morphine." She nodded.

"Thanks for your help." She told him. He smiled and nodded before walking away. She rolled over, pulling the blanket with her. It was cold, the cool air coming off the mountains and cooling the late September air. She closed her eyes and breathed in. She missed her friends and hoped they were well. But she had bigger problems now. She met her new crew tomorrow.

Being a woman in the army isn't rainbows and sunshine. Many times it was mud, rain, blood, being pushed around, treated like dirt by people who should treat you like an equal, getting your ass grabbed all the time, lewd comments, you get the idea.

But if she could survive as long as she had, she could go a little longer. She had a job to do. Maybe it was for the best that she was getting a new group. She had almost forgotten why she was there in the first place. She had gotten so attached to her first group, she lost sight of what she wanted. Starting over would help her remember.

"Joanne King?" A soldier asked as he entered the medical tent. Jo stood from her cot and faced him. He nodded at her and walked over. He handed her a piece of paper. "You've been assigned to Sargent Collier. He and his crew should be here by now. Give him this form when you see him."

"What is it?" She asked and looked down at it.

"It'll let him know that you being assigned to them is nonnegotiable." He told her. "Good luck." He said and turned, walking away. Jo watched him go and sighed. She sat back down and tied her boots before grabbing her bag. She stood and threw it over her back. She grabbed her hat and placed it on her head. Now or never.

Jo walked out of the medical tent and walked around. She had to find a man named Sargent Don collier. How she was supposed to find him, she had no idea. Her best guess would be looking at the tanks that were lined up on one side of the camp. She found that many were abandoned by there crew for the day, but some had crews working on them.

"Excuse me!" She called up to a man on his tank, getting his attention. "Where can I find Sargent Collier?" She asked. The man took off his helmet and pointed. She turned ad say a tank with a crew around it and on it, fixing it up. On the cannon the word Fury was painted. She approached the tank and looked up to the man on top. "Sargent Collier?" She called up. He looked at her.

"Who's asking?" He called down.

"You're new crew member." She told him. "I've been reassigned to you." Sergent Collier stood and started climbing down the tank before hopping off and landing in front of her. He looked her up and down. Her long hair was in a braid, her face was soft, her figure was feminine, she was a woman. His eyes weren't playing tricks, this person in front of him was a woman, claiming to have been reassigned to his group.

"Bullshit." He told her. Behind them, two men on the tank, started arguing. It looked like one of them got shocked. He shouted, swore and waved his hand. He leaned over the hatch and shouted down.

"Damnit, Grady! Shut the damn thing off!" He shouted.

"I fucking did, man!" He called back.

"Then why the hell did I just fry my damn hand?" He shouted.

"You're a fucking idiot that's why!" The man in the tank shouted.

"The fuck you say to me, Coon-ass?" The man on the tank shouted and reached in.

"Bible! Grady!" Collier called out to them. "Knock it off, we gotta get this shit done before we role out." He turned back to Jo. She handed him a piece of paper that she had been given earlier. He snatched it from her and read it. "Fine." He said and snatched her bag from her. He let out and indignant hey, but it went ignored. "Bible!" He shouted and tossed it up to him. Bible caught it and dropped it into one of the driver's hatches.

"I'm not a driver." She told him.

"You are now." He told her and walked away, leaving her with her new tank mates. She sighed to herself and stood firm.

Don wasn't sure how long he had been gone from his crew, but he was certain it wasn't long enough for them to get into any trouble. He had just tried to get the girl transferred to a different group. However, there was nothing he could do. Collier was basically told to suck it up.

When he arrived back at the tank, part of him expected them to be at each other's throats. He did not expect to see her Sitting on top of the tank, helping Grady readjust the gun she would be using.

Although if he looked closer, he would see that what he was looking at was not his tank. The people there weren't even his crew mates, and the person who looked like the girl, Joanne king, was not a girl. He looked to his left and saw his tank. That looked more like his tank. Boyd was sitting down on the tank, smoking and reading his Bible. Grady had the girl in a chokehold and she didn't even have her feet on the ground. But she was putting up one hell of a fight. While grady had her in a chokehold, her legs were wrapped around Gordo's neck, choking him, and her teeth were buried in Grady's arm.

"Stop fucking bighting you crazy bitch!" Grady shouted. Gordo kept smacking her leg, trying to tell her he gave up. She didn't seem to get the message.

"Hey!" He shouted, getting everyone's attention. "Gear up, we're rolling out." Grady dropped her and the woman fell to the ground. Jo lay in the mud, scowling at the sky. She propped herself up on her elbows and looked up at the man leaning over her. Don Collier was a tall, sturdy man, not as tall as Grady, but tall and commanding. His face had a bit of a shadow from not shaving, making him look rough and dirty, but his cold eyes were clear and bright. "You're with us until we find your old crew." He told her. She stayed quiet, listening. "You either keep up or get lost. And if I feel you are slowing us down, or putting my crew in danger, I'll shoot you myself." He told her. Jo felt chills go down her spine as he spoke with such a cold, but still calm tone. He looked at her on the ground, in the mud, her dark brown eyes staring up at him, almost uncaring, blasé, if you will. "AM I understood?" She blinked at him and her stare turned harsh.

"Perfectly."


	3. Chapter 3 First Day at Work

Her arm was still stiff and injured, so getting up the tank and inside was a challenge. But it wasn't as bad as getting out. The caravan they were traveling with had stopped for the night. She was stiff from being cramped in a tank all day, but she didn't mind. It was an improvement from being doped up on morphine.

Jo stood and used her good arm to help hoist her up, but she was too short. She hissed when she tried to put weight on her injured shoulder.

"Hey, the fuck's wrong with you?" Gordo called over as he climbed out with a small grin. "You stuck?" He asked and hopped off the tank, leaving her. She huffed and tried again. No luck. She put her feet on the backrest of the seat and pushed off. She was able to haul herself out enough to roll herself onto the top and slid off. She looked around and saw everyone was setting up little fires and pulling out crates to sit on. People seemed to be struggling getting a fire started since everything was pretty wet still. Her group just had smoking leaves.

Luckily for her group, this was something she'd known how to do since she was little. She set off into the woods. There were a few spots she found first. She picked up dead branches of pine and stripped the dead needles off and tucked them into an inner pocket in her coat. Next she moved onto the birch trees. She picked up some of the smaller twigs and sticks. Some she took her knife and shaved off the outer layers, getting to the dryer center. She tucked them into another dry inner pocket and got some shavings of the inner layer of the stick as well. Jo tried to find dry bark, but she had no such luck, but that was fine, she had something at least.

Jo made her way back to the group and found them still trying to get a fire going. She stepped up next to Bible and crouched down next to him, he was the one trying to light the fire.

"Mind if I try?" She asked politely. She was raised a lady, and now that she was rolling around in the dirt all day and killing people, it was no excuse to be flat out rude. Boyd had actually been polite to her when they spoke, so she had no qualms with him. He looked at her and raised his eyebrows. He shrugged and leaned back. He sat on the ground and watched her.

"Hey," He said when she knocked away his smoldering pile of leaves. She didn't pay attention. Joan grabbed the hem of her undershirt and ripped off a small section. Then she started to pull out the little bits of wood she had gathered and pulled out her small pack of matches. It took her a couple of tries, but sure enough, she got a fire going. Once she was sure it was steady enough, she went out ot get more wood. She didn't go more than a few feet away from the fire.

"Thanks, Bible." Don said as he came back from talking to the other people in charge. He grabbed a crate and sat down.

"Wasn't me." Bible told him. Don frowned and Boyd nodded at Joan who was just about to crouch next to the fire to feed it.

"You did this?" He asked. She nodded and hummed. "Good job. Everyone else is still struggling."

"How'd you get it lit faster?" Grady asked as he sat on another crate and tossed out rations. Joan caught hers easily and shrugged.

"My brother taught me when we were little." She told them. "Never thought I'd have to use it." She joked quietly.

"Your brother," Bible said. "He fighting too?" Joan looked at him and then back at the fire. She sat back on the ground and shrugged.

"He was." She told him. She really didn't want to get into it.

"Was?" Grady snorted. "What he do, go home? How he do that?"

"Grady." Bible said quietly, catching on.

"What?" HE asked as Joan dug in one of her many coat pockets. She pulled out a letter. She unfolded it and looked at it. It was bent and worn down from being read over and over. She smoothed out the creases as best as she could. Don recognized the letter. His family had gotten one when his father died in the first world war.

"To the family of Private Johnathan Lee King," She started to read. She noticed that the circle was quiet but kept reading. "It is my painful duty to inform you that on this day, July 18, 1942, a report has been filed declaring that Private Johnathan Lee King has become Missing in Action (MIA.)." She paused here. Joan had to clear her throat. No matter how many times she read it, reading it out loud broke her heart just as it had the first time she had read it. "Private King was last seen while participating in taking a German town. His group lost sight of him during the fray and no body has been identified. WE are deeply sorry for your loss and we thank you and your son for your service." She was quiet and folded the letter back up but did not put it away.

"Damn. Grady." Gordo said and shook his head. "You always gotta have the shittiest timing, man?"

"Hey, how the fuck was I supposed to know her brother went fucking missing, hu?" Grady shouted, standing up. Joan just fished out her cigarettes and started smoking, watching them argue.

"So what are you doing here?" Bible asked her. "Why you in Germany?"

"Why are you here?" She asked him, her deep brown eyes pinning him in his spot. He shrugged before answering.

"It's my duty as a Christian, and as an American." He told her simply.

"Then the same goes for me." She told him. They left her alone for a bit as they all focused on eating. Grady would antagonize Boyd and Don would break them up. It wasn't unpleasant, but she missed her old group. The sun had gone down, and all you could see were small fires. They kept them low as to avoid detection. Grady and Gordo had busted out a bottle of something and were passing it between each other. Joan had declined their offer a few swigs, stating that she doesn't drink.

After a while she stood and wandered over to the side of the tank where she could have some privacy. She shed her heady coat, missing its warmth immediately. She quickly shed her shirt and sat in an undershirt. She pulled out a roll of bandages and set them in her lap. She started peeling off the old ones, hissing at the stinging as they tore away from the skin. She cleaned her shoulder quickly and began wrapping it up again. It was difficult but once she got in a rhythm, she was fine.

"What happened?" Boyd asked, startling Joan. She looked up at him with wide eyes, before her neural look slid back on her face. She offered a weak smile.

"Grenade." She answered simply and started wrapping herself up.

"They usually blow off people's legs." He pointed out. "What were you doing? Lying next to it when it went off?"

"DO you guys always stick your noses into other people's business?" She asked as she stood and threw her coat back on, glad to be semi-warm again. Boyd just smiled and shrugged. She huffed and walked past him. On the other side of the tank, Grady and Gordo were setting up the tent they would be sleeping in. It was just a small tarp held up by some short rods. Joan climbed up the tank and reached in to grab her small bag. Her original bag was with her old crew. Now she had a small bag with a spare change of clothes, some food and a canteen. It was small enough to be used as a slight pillow, and that was how she was going to use it.

The group wound down quickly, especially since Gordo and Grady were two shots from passing out. They fell asleep first. Both Boyd and Don were out quickly as well. Joan lay, staring up at the roof. Small pats of rain began to hit the roof. A shiver ran down her spine and she rolled over onto her side, facing the tarp. She tried her best not to shiver, or let her teeth chatter, but she was cold.

Joan fought to keep a cough quiet. She had been coughing almost all day, much to her displeasure. Joan prayed to God that she wouldn't get sick. She pulled out the letter she had read earlier and looked at it, reminding her why she was here. She had a job to do.

Joan closed her eyes and tried to get some sleep, but it was too cold. And every time she started to nod off, she would wake up trying not to cough. Don, could hear her quiet coughing and shivering. He rolled onto his side, facing away from her and backed up quietly until his back touched hers. He hoped that some of his warmth would help her keep from getting much sicker. The last thing he needed was his crewmate getting pneumonia. He felt her freeze but she slowly began to relax. She shook when she coughed, but eventually she fell asleep. Don had just begun to doze off again when he was startled awake. He looked over his shouder to see what he had felt.

Joan had rolled over and curled up into a tiny ball, her face buried in his back, and she had tried to get as close as possible. Don rolled his eyes and went back to sleep.

Joan slept peacefully, grateful for the little warmth Don had provided. She had fallen asleep and she wasn't sure what time it was but something startled her awake. She frowned and blinked when she noticed her face was pressed against her Sargent's back. He was breathing steadily, so he was asleep. It wasn't don that woke her.

Joan frowned and pressed her hand to the ground. The ground was trembling. It took her a minute to remember what it could be. Her eyes shot open as she sat up quickly, grabbing her things.

"Tank!" She shouted as loud as she could. No sooner had the words left her mouth, a whistling sound shrieked through the field they were in and a loud boom shook the ground. Everyone was up and running around. If Joan's warning hadn't woken them, the explosion did. Joan was out of the tent before most of her group codl even stand, but they followed suit.

"Joan, Gordo, get it going!" Don shouted and Joan and Gordo shouted back their acknowledgements. They worked quickly, adrenaline pumping, as they got the tank running. Grady and Boyd were getting the cannon ready as Don called out on the radio.

"This is War Daddy, anyone got a visual on these assholes yet?" HE called on. Someone responded saying they couldn't see them, the rain was too heavy. Another whistling sound made its way towards them and shook the ground as it hit nearby. Joan looked into her scope and tried to see. She looked for the flashes of light from when the tank fired.

"There's about two on our six." Gordo reported. "You gotta watch for the flashes." The ground shook as another bomb went off nearby.

"Alright, it seems like they can't see us well either. Probably found us from the fires. So let's hit 'em hard and let's hit 'em fast. WE can't let them know where we are." Don announced over the radio.

"Got a third." Joan announced, alarmed. "Sir, it's at three o'clock and heading right towards us."

"I'll get it." Boyd said and began to move the cannon.

"Stop, wait until the other two of ours is ready to take out the two on our six." He ordered and got on the radio.

"Gordo, you see this right?" Joan asked him through their headsets.

"Oh shit." She heard him mumbled. "Top, we have ground troops with the tank at three o'clock."

"If they're that close, they can see us." He said. "Bible, fire when ready! Take out that tank." He ordered. "Once it's gone, Joan, Gordo, take out their troops."

"on the way!" Bible shouted. "Grady laod! Load!"

"Loading, don't get your panties in a twist!" He shouted. Joan and Gordo began to ire at the ground troops.

"Bible, fire when ready!" Don ordered as the ground shook. Debris hit the tank as it shook as well.

"I think it hit right next to us." Joan commented.

"The one at three is still firing!" Gordo shouted. "I can't see shit with this rain! How they see us?"

"I've got too much water on my scope." Joan added. "Sergent! Put me on the outer gun!" She told him.

"Not a chance, stay where you are and keep firing." HE ordered and the tank shook as a bomb landed right next to them. "Bible, take out that goddamn tank!" He shouted.

"On the way!" Bible shouted.

"Reloading." Gordo announced and Joan kept firing. She knew she would be more useful on the outside, right now she felt like she was wasting bullets. They were getting desperate as the tank rolled closer with its ground troops. One of the tanks had been taken out, but there were two more. When a bomb hit right next to the tank, Don had to do something.

"King!" He shouted, getting her attention. "If you get up top, can you do some damage?" He asked She blinked at him, startled he was actually going to put her outside. "Can you?" He asked. She grinned.

"Yes, sir!" She shouted and crawled back and over to Grady's hatch. It was closer to the gun and would decrease her risk of getting shot. "Grady, gimme a boost out." She told him. He grabbed her legs and hoisted her. She opened the hatch and rolled out, keeping low, and kicked the hatch shut. Don's hatch opened as well, enabling him to keep an eye on his crew that was inside and outside the tank. She got to the back gun and stood. She quickly looked for the tank heading their way. She could make out some figures on the top of the enemy tank. She aimed and fired, taking them out. The tank stopped rolling and she fired again, except this time at the troops on the ground.

"Bible, fire at the tank again, their sitting ducks." He ordered. Grady loaded and Bible fired. "Joan, fire at the second tank, try to take out their tops."

"Roger." She shouted back and turned as much as she could and began to fire once she saw them. She got one, but the second had ducked in too fast. They kept exchanging blows, and before long, the sun began to creep over the horizon.

"Alright, boys, we're running out of time." Don told them. "We got one tank left and a bunch of ground troops. "Tank two, take out the ground troops, we'll handle the last tank with tank three." Don got back the acknowledgements from the other two tanks they were with and then began to order his tank. "Gordo, wing us around to face the one behind us." He ordered. Joan hung on tightly as the tank began to roll. They didn't get too far from the tree line when another shot was fired at them. It ricochet off them and went through a tree right behind them. Joan looked behind her to see the tree starting to fall.

"Get down!" She shouted. Don had just enough time to turn to see it and duck before the tree crashed right on top of them, some branches falling into the tank.

"Top, you good?" Bible asked.

"I'm fine, keep firing!" He ordered and tried to stand. The tree had trapped him in the tank. "Joan, can you hear me?" He asked through his headset. He didn't get a response. "King?" He called again but to no avail. "Gordo, keep driving, maybe we can get this damn tree off us." Gordo drove forward as Grady and boyd kept loading and firing. Even though they drove forward, the tree was stuck on top of them.

"Where's Joan?" Gordo asked.

"She's outside." Don answered. "I can't see her right now, but we got other fish to fry. Bible, I want that tank gone!" He ordered. The group worked with the other tank to take out what was left of the German tanks. Then it was the ground troops they had to take care of. They turned the tank around to join the other two tanks. One of them had been hit and immobilized by the German tank, but it seemed like most of them were ok. One had climbed out and was checking on Joan. She was on the ground and not moving, but he had to focus on his crew, with him now.

Thank you for reading. And a special thanks to the men and women who are fighting, or have fought, or will fight. I would like to dedicate this chapter to those who serve and their families. Thank you again.

Thank you to everyone who has read this, sorry this is so short. Please Review.


	4. Chapter 4 Temper

Joan grunted and propped herself up on her elbows. She took one look at her leg, groaned and leaned back. She lay there, hoping she didn't get hit by something else, and waited for help. She knew better than to move when you have a piece of tree sticking out of your thigh.

"You alright?" A man asked as he came into view. She hummed and nodded.

"We get 'em?" She asked him, referring to the Nazi tanks. The man before her grinned as he crouched down next to her. "Everyone in your tank ok? Saw ya'll got hit pretty hard."

"Yeah, we're ok." He told her and turned his head. She followed his line of sight to her new tank making its way back over to them and the damaged tank. She could see Don at the top with bible and Grady outside as well.

"Hey, Top, you think she's still alive?" She heard Grady ask loudly. They all had smirks and grins from the victory.

"Dunno, lemme ask." He said and turned to her. "Hey King, how are holding up?"

"I have a piece of tree sticking outta my leg." She snapped at him. "How the fuck you think I'm doing?" Boyd snorted with Don. But the men were startled when she shrieked out in surprise. She only screamed for a second, and then she clenched her jaw shut. She grunted and tried to hold it in. The guy next to her had ripped the stick out of her leg. She curled up on her side and lay on the ground, just grunting in pain.

"Damn, King." Boyd said. "Thought you were being murdered." He joked. She just waved at him. Grady and Bible laughed.

"Joan, get outta the dirt." Don told her. She grunted and waved again. The other guy had gotten up by now and leaned down to help her. "Don't touch her, let her get up on her own." Don told him. The guy put his hands in the air and walked away. Joan looked up at him with a glare, still clutching her leg.

"You ass." She bit at him and rolled. She got herself up carefully, making sure not to hurt her leg or her arm. She hobbled over to the tank and scrambled up it as best as she could. Grady grabbed the back of her shirt and helped pull her up. She oofed as she hit the top. She looked at him over her shoulder and saw him give her a small toothy grin. She smiled back and nodded in thanks. She slid into the tank and crawled over to her seat. She hunkered in and shivered. Jo pulled her coat tighter around her as she grabbed her bag. It had some bandages in it and she lazily wrapped it around her thigh. It was bleeding but not so badly that she thought she would have to stitch it up.

"Alright is everyone accounted for?" Top asked as he crouched into the tank. He looked around, checking on everyone.

"We're all here." Bible told him as he flipped open his book.

"Gordo, roll us out." Don ordered. Gordo acknowledged and started the tank forward. Bible sat back and Joan watched her crew as they shook when the tank rolled over every bump in the road. Don sat in his seat and Joan watched him as he lit a cigarette. He stuck it in his mouth and held it there tightly. His lighter was a silvery bright metal that contrasted with his dirty, grimy face. The lighter was clean and bright where his skin was covered in soot and dirt. His eyes were almost as bright and clear as his lighter, though, and now more of a pale blue. But when he flicked the lighter to start the fire, it shone in his eyes, and Joan could see the icey blue. His eyes blinked away the smoke from the cigarette and Joan looked at Bible.

Bible was just doing what he does best, reading his Bible. He sniffed and licked his finger before turning the page. His face had some dirt on the side of his cheek. Bible was a kind man. Joan found for the most part, they all were kind, in their own way, looking after one another, but also never missing an opportunity to poke and instigate each other.

She looked at Gordo, who had caught her staring at the crew. He was smiling and looked at her again. She blinked at him and scowled. _What_ she mouthed. He just shook his head and focused on driving. She glared at him anyway. She didn't stop until after a few seconds later, Grady popped the hatch and stood. Joan settled back in and pulled her hat down, aiming to get some sleep.

The first few weeks went by without incident. They rolled in, killed Germans, took towns, lost friends, the basics of war. Every night, when things were winding down, Joan would pull out her letter and read it. Every time they rolled into an American base, she would ask around. Each time she would get the same answer, and spend the day in a foul mood, kicking things in frustration.

Joan stormed away, frustrated and angry. SHe couldn't accept it, she wouldn't accept it. He was missing, not dead. He couldn't be dead, and she was angry no one else seemed to care. As she neared her tank, she saw a small crate. She stormed over to it and kicked it as hard as she could, only to shout out in pain. THe crate didn't budge and now her foot hurt like hell.

"The hell's your problem?" Grady asked as he sipped his coffee.

"Man, just leave her alone." Gordo told him. "One of these days she's gonna kick you in the head instead of these crates."

"Joan, coffee's ready." Boyd told her as he looked over at her on the ground. She was sitting there, holding her foot and still. sHe was facing away. She was pouting again. Boyd sighed and stood, brigning the coffee with him. He waved it infront of her face until she took it. He sat on the ground next to her. "You're gonna break your foot if you keep kicking the crates."

"Don't see how its your concern." She all but spt at him.

"You're my crewmate. Your performance affects my survival." He told her, sipping from his own tin cup.

"Ya'll realy do care."She commented sarcastically. Boyd just hummed.

"You're looking for your brother right?" Boyd asked. Joan shrugged. "You know you're probably never gonna find him." He pointed out and Joan froze. "You need to at least start accepting the possibility that he's go-" Joan shot up to her feet and spun to face him.

"You don't know shit!" SHe shouted. "You better keep your fucking mouth shut! I'll find him, you'll see! He ain't dead and i'll prove it to you!" SHe shouted accusingly at Bible who sat there almost a look of pity.

"Joan! Bible!" A voice called to them. They looked over to the tank where Don stood. "Let's go, we're rolling out!" He ordered. Joan coudl see Grady and Gordo already starting to pack up. Bible stood and wlaked over calmly while Joan followed, biting her tongue hard. SHe was about to climb up but Don grabbed her arm and roughly pulled her to face him. "What the hell was that?" He asked.

"Nothing." SHe answered quickly.

"We are a team, we work as one functioning unit, it's how we survive." He told her, still holding her arm roughly. "If you threaten that, if you put any one of us in danger, I'll put you down myself." She clenched her jaw shut. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir." SHe answered. Don nodded and let her go. She climbed up first and got in her seat. She heard DOn climbing on the top and hear him slip into the hatch. He gave the orders and they rolled out. Her leg throbbed a bit, and so did her foot, but she kept her mouth shut. SHe knew she should apologize to Boyd, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She reached into her inner pocket and rubbed a photograph she kept there.


End file.
